Names that mean king
This list groups names by the literal gloss at the start of each meaning, not the cultural notes that follow. Closely related meanings are gathered under king. Tap any name for its story, or grow a tree and see which of them belong in your family.
Raj Sanskrit ยท king, ruler
Nana Akan ยท chief, king, queen, or elder; an honorific and given name across Akan society, also used for "grandparent"
Vuong Vietnamese ยท king, monarch; written Vฦฐฦกng
Melvin Irish ยท chief, leader
Vasily Russian ยท royal, kingly
Min Burmese ยท king, ruler (แแแบแธ); the royal word of the old Burmese court, now a favorite opener in modern boys' names like Min Khant and Min Thant
Kuhio Hawaiian ยท royal, prince
Basil Greek ยท kingly, royal
Lani Hawaiian ยท sky, heaven, royal
Kaan Turkish ยท ruler, khan
Kendrick Welsh ยท traditionally "chief, high ruler"
Kwan Cantonese ยท ruler or lord; a person of cultivated character (ๅ)
Queen English ยท queen, royal woman
Durai Tamil ยท chief, leader (Tamil)
Leroy French ยท French, 'the king'
Gamini Sinhala ยท chief, leader (Pali gamani); the epithet of the hero-king Dutugamunu of the second century BCE, and a mid-century staple for Sinhala boys, now firmly a grandfather-generation name
Rex Latin ยท means 'king'
Datu Filipino ยท chief, leader (pre-colonial title-name)
Amory Germanic ยท love-power, love-ruler; a name genuinely rooted in the Old French/Germanic "love" element
Royal English ยท from the word "royal"
King English ยท from the title/word "king"
Lakan Filipino ยท lord, chief (pre-colonial Tagalog title-name)
Henri French ยท ruler of the household
Rรญona Irish ยท queenly (from rรญ, king)
Leeroy French ยท a spelling variant of Leroy, French le roi, the king
Roy Scottish ยท anglicized form of the Gaelic Ruadh, 'red', once a nickname for red hair; long associated with French roi, 'king'
Malik Arabic ยท king; a widely loved classic across Black American generations
Royalty French ยท word name meaning 'royal rank, kingship', from Old French roialte
Walter Germanic ยท ruler of the army
Torin Irish ยท traditionally "chief"
Derek Germanic ยท ruler of the people
Waldemar German ยท famous ruler; genuinely documented among German-Brazilian men in the southern colonies
Roderick Germanic ยท famous ruler
Rodrigo Spanish ยท famous ruler
Vladimir Russian ยท famous ruler
Rey Spanish ยท king (from Latin rex)
Don Scottish ยท short for Donald, 'world ruler'
Renaud French ยท well-advised ruler
Elroy French ยท From Old French le roi, the king, with the Spanish article el; a genuine royal-title name.
Isha Sanskrit ยท goddess, ruler (short and phonetic; an easy crossover pick)
Khari African ยท believed to mean kingly, royal in Swahili
Harald Norse ยท army ruler; famously borne by King Harald V of Norway; famously borne by Harald Fairhair, Norway's first king
Harold Germanic ยท army ruler
Hoang Vietnamese ยท royal, yellow (a common surname used as a given name)
Donald Scottish ยท world ruler
Alaric Germanic ยท ruler of all (ala 'all' + ric 'ruler'); borne by the Visigothic king who sacked Rome in 410 AD
Shahzad Urdu ยท prince, son of the king (Persian); pure Persianate court vocabulary carried into Urdu, the same register that gives shahzadi for princess; a fathers'-generation classic more than a 2020s pick
Suresh Sanskrit ยท ruler of the gods; a common first-generation immigrant classic
Shahin Persian ยท royal falcon (from shah, 'king')
Kennedy Irish ยท from Irish surname ร Cinnรฉidigh and the byname Cennรฉtig, possibly "armoured head" or "misshapen head"
Obed Hebrew ยท 'serving, servant', biblical (grandfather of King David)
Theodoric Germanic ยท ruler of the people (theud 'people' + ric 'ruler'); the Ostrogothic warrior-king who conquered Italy
Naresh Telugu ยท lord of men, a king (Sanskrit nara + isha); another 1960s-80s -esh cohort classic, familiar from the veteran actor Naresh
Kingston English ยท place name, "king's settlement"
Ronald Scandinavian ยท ruler's counselor
Enrico Italian ยท ruler of the home (heim 'home' + ric 'ruler'); famously borne by Enrico Fermi, physicist who built the first nuclear reactor
Kaiulani Hawaiian ยท traditionally glossed 'the royal one, the highest point'; famously borne by Princess Kaสปiulani, Crown Princess of the Kingdom of Hawaii
Harris English ยท son of Harry (Henry), home ruler
Vladyslav Ukrainian ยท ruler of glory
Emry Welsh ยท variant of Emrys/Emery, traditionally 'ruler'
Roald Old Norse ยท Old Norse for famous ruler; famously borne by Roald Amundsen, the first person to reach the South Pole.
Aubrey Germanic ยท from Alberic, "elf ruler"; originally masculine, now mostly feminine
Malek Arabic ยท variant of Malik, traditionally 'king'
Prasenjit Bengali ยท "a king of the epics"; from Prasenajit, a historical king of Kosala in the 6th century BCE and a contemporary and patron of the Buddha
Heinrich German ยท home ruler
Ka'iulani Hawaiian ยท the royal sacred one
Richard Germanic ยท brave ruler
Ricardo Spanish ยท brave ruler
Erica Scandinavian ยท ever ruler; also the name of the heather plant
Isolde Germanic ยท uncertain, possibly "ice ruler"; the legendary tragic lover of Tristan
Monty English ยท mountain of the ruler; short for Montgomery
Adaeze Igbo ยท princess, daughter of the king (Igbo)
Aric Modern American ยท A respelling of Eric, Old Norse, ever-ruler or sole ruler.
Wassily Russian, from Greek ยท Russian form of Basil, from Greek basileus, king; famously borne by Wassily Kandinsky, often credited with painting the first fully abstract works.
Donnie Scottish ยท diminutive of Donald, world ruler
Rodrick Germanic ยท A simplified spelling of Roderick, from Old German hruod, fame, and ric, ruler; borne by the last Visigothic king of Spain.
Fredric Germanic ยท A variant spelling of Frederick, from Germanic frid, peace, and ric, ruler: peaceful ruler.
Vasilisa Russian ยท royal, queenly (folk-tale heroine, Vasilisa the Beautiful)
Kinsley English ยท from a surname and place name, "clearing belonging to Cyne" (Old English Cyne, a short form of royal cyne- names)
Rajwinder Punjabi ยท king joined with Indra's name, regal and martial imagery (raj + inder)
Fred Germanic ยท short for Frederick, 'peaceful ruler'
Ron Scandinavian ยท short form of Ronald, 'ruler's counsel'
Rickey Germanic ยท nickname for Richard, brave ruler
Rory Irish ยท red king
Niall Irish ยท champion, cloud (legendary High King Niall of the Nine Hostages)
Landry French ยท from Germanic Landric, 'ruler of the land'
Harriet Germanic ยท feminine form of Harry/Henry, meaning 'home ruler'
Hank Germanic ยท pet form of Henry, "home ruler"
Dickie Germanic ยท a diminutive nickname of Richard, from Germanic ric, ruler, and hard, brave, strong; part of the medieval rhyming-nickname tradition
Frederika Germanic ยท peaceful ruler; famously borne by Queen Frederica of the Hellenes, consort of Greece's King Paul
Which of these fits YOUR family? โ